Shelter animals now on Facebook

The Lovell Police Dept. just made it a little bit easier to find a missing pet or to find one available for adoption. Pets being held at the Lovell Animal Shelter are now featured on the LPD Facebook page.

This little wire-haired dog was picked up as a stray a few weeks ago and has been transferred to a local pet rescue group that will attempt to find him a forever home.Patti Carpenter photo

It is a town ordinance that owners of dogs and cats purchase a special tag for animals kept within the town limits. Owners must show proof of rabies vaccination and renew the tag on an annual basis. The nominal fee for the tag is $10 for unneutered or unspayed dogs or cats and $2.50 for animals that are spayed or neutered.

Lovell Police Chief Nick Lewis said the tag helps identify and reunite lost pets with their owners. It also helps owners avoid costly fines and daily boarding fees incurred for pets that are picked up and taken to the shelter.

According to the ordinance an owner of a pet who fails to purchase the tag can be fined up to $750. The impound fees of $10 per day per animal add up very quickly and lost pets who are not claimed within six days can be adopted out or in some cases euthanized if the shelter is full and no one claims or adopts the animal.

“I think it’s a win-win situation for pet owners and us,” said Lewis. “It allows us to reunite the pets with their owners quickly and costs the owner a lot less to recover their pet when the pet is wearing a tag.”

Lewis added that in cases involving bites it allows authorities to determine if the animal has had its rabies shot and helps the victim of a bite avoid painful and expensive rabies treatments.

The shelter is currently full and many of the pets that are available for adoption are being featured on the Facebook page.